2011
England, Canada, and America were all at England's house for a meeting. Amusingly enough, none of them were too keen to talk business. Well, not collectively, that is.
First off, neither Alfred nor Iggy even knew that poor Matthew was there. If he ever did show an interest in talking about whatever it was that they had been summoned for, he would never be able to get anyone's attention long enough for a conversation.
America was too intent on getting lunch to care about anything else. All he wanted to do was complain about how Britain wasn't feeding him.
The ever irritated England had a bit more of a diabolical agenda today, one that he was set on completing, whether Alfred was there or not.
"C'mon man! Isn't there supposed to be food at these meeting thingys?" America rolled on the ground dramatically.
"I wasn't even aware there was a meeting, and I don't really care whether you starve or not." England replied halfheartedly. He was more interested in the book in his hand.
"What are you reading? Don't you know reading is lame? And why did you decide to have the meeting outside? Are we gonna fly airplanes?"
England noted that Alfred somehow spoke more nonsense than he usually did when he was hungry.
Upon deciding that his best course of action was to ignore the motor mouth behind him, England set to work with a can of spray-paint. The trio was sitting on top of a grassy hill in a small forest; Iggy had chosen the spot to make sure that his pentagram had plenty of room.
"What are you doing?" Alfred asked, for once sounding genuinely interested in something that England was up to.
"If you must know, I'm trying to bring back a great politician from the past. I'm sick and tired of these ill-educated, despicable politicians today. They were much better in the past, and I plan to bring one of them back to life in order to set things straight." Britain explained seriously.
Alfred laughed for quite a while after that. He only managed to calm himself down after Iggy had finished with his pentagram.
"That's so cool! Can you bring back Abraham Lincoln for me? I really liked him."
"Are you making fun of me?" England snapped.
"Of course not!" America exclaimed, hurt. "I really did like Lincoln."
England just sighed, and walked a bit farther down the hill. He returned a few moments later with a dark cloak on and the hood flipped up over his head.
"Man, you look creepy." Alfred exclaimed, taking a step back involuntarily. "What's with the funny clothes?"
"I've found that this kind of sorcery requires the right clothing," was England's terse answer. "Now step back."
America did as he was told, completely forgetting his hunger in his excitement to see what happened next.
England put his hands on the edge of the purple pentagram, and started chanting some old language that Alfred felt he was too young to understand. America had no idea what he was saying, but he had a really intense urge to laugh at the cloaked blonde. Canada watched from the background; he had claimed from the beginning that this probably wasn't a good idea.
England kept chanting as the hilltop was enshrined in a purple fog. It was so foggy that Alfred couldn't even see his own hands. What was going on here?
The cloaked blonde was nowhere to be seen, but Alfred could still hear him. In fact, it scared the crap out of him when England stopped chanting and started yelling even more gibberish. There was a loud thump, and Alfred could only hear a strange moaning. Alfred ran blindly through the fog, trying to find the source of the moaning, and ran straight into someone. There was still too much purple in his face to be able to see the other victim of the crash, but it became very apparent it was someone Alfred didn't know.
"What the hell?" came an unfamiliar voice, "Merlin? Merlin where are you?"
Merlin? Now where had Alfred heard that name before….
"Dammit, I don't think he's here. What kind of magic is this anyway? I've never seen anything like it."
Magic? Merlin? Politicians? Alfred thought that there was a connection in all this…. Nah, it was too much effort to try to figure out.
"Hello?" Alfred tried, standing up as the billowing smoke around him started to fade away.
"Who are you and what have you done to me?" the unfamiliar voice asked him. A sword was now being pointed at Alfred's throat, and he wasn't too sure how he should be responding to that. He noted that the offender holding the sword was indeed a stranger to him, but looked oddly like England. He had short blonde hair, was about 19 years old, and was dressed like a knight. From his accent, it was safe to assume that he was actually British.
"What me? No, I'm nobody! Honest dude, I'm as lost as you!" Alfred flailed his hands in innocence as he tried to back away, but the armed man kept his sword right at Alfred's throat.
….
Meanwhile, there was another stranger in the countries' midst.
"Hello?" Canada coughed. He found himself completely alone, enshrouded in purple mist. Both England and America were gone, and Canada was utterly confused. This really hadn't turned out to be much of a meeting.
"Hello?" an unfamiliar voice responded. Canada jumped, taken aback. Most people never heard when Matthew called out.
"Who are you?" Matthew asked timidly, still not really expecting a response.
"My name is Merlin. Who are you?" The disembodied voice grew closer until a youth unexpectedly rammed into Canada. "Oww! Oh sorry, I didn't see you there."
"I'm O.K. I'm surprised you can even see me now to be honest." Canada replied dejectedly.
"Well of course I can see you now. That's just silly! Here, would you like me to help you up? It's the least I can do after knocking you over so rudely." Merlin offered the country a hand, and received a wonderful smile in response.
"Thanks so much. No one has ever been so nice to me."
"What? You must be joking! Why would people be cruel to you? You seem so kind and gentle." Merlin replied, aghast at the idea.
As the purple mist around them cleared, Merlin got a better look at the strange man before him. He wore glasses, and did seem rather timid. Maybe it was this that got him bullied.
"That's just it. Being timid in my line of work gets me bullied easily, and I'm sure my glasses don't help anything at all. I'm just a nobody, after all."Canada said quietly, mostly speaking to the ground.
Wait, had that man just replied to Merlin's thoughts? Merlin pondered the idea. He hadn't said those things a moment ago. Had he?
"Well thank you for helping me. I'm sorry if I've been a bother." Matthew said quickly, trying to make a quick getaway.
Merlin's inhibitions dissipated almost instantly. For some reason, he just didn't feel like this guy could be a bad person, even if he did somehow read Merlin's mind.
"Don't be like that! We nobodies have to stick together! I know exactly how you feel. I'm stuck with the biggest narcissist that ever lived, and he treats me like garbage just because he's royalty."
"You get bullied too? I'm sorry…"
Merlin laughed and plopped down on the ground. Most of the smoke was gone now, and Merlin could see that he was on top of a beautiful hill. The forest sprawled out beneath him, and he felt exceedingly relaxed with his companion. He was quite happy where he was.
"No need to apologize. It's really not that bad. Fortunately, I've learned that I'm easily overlooked, which keeps me out of trouble quite often."
"What do you mean? I thought being ignored was a bad thing."
"Well, usually it is. Especially when you know what you're talking about and no one will listen. That's happened more times than I care to count. But on the other hand, if no one is paying attention to you, you can get away with lots of stuff. Since no one notices you, you're never the first person to be blamed, or people wouldn't expect you to be able to pull off whatever it is that you did. That fact has saved my life more than I want to count either."
"Wow," Canada pondered this even as he spoke, "I never thought of it like that".
"Yeah, I've had a lot of people try to point out the good points in my life, and they've really helped me see that I'm really lucky just as I am." Merlin thought of Gaius, and suddenly started worrying about whether he would see him again or not. "Where am I anyway? I should really be getting back to Arthur, or I really will get into trouble this time."
"MERLIN!" Arthur's voice rang out. The rest of the purple fog had dissipated, so Merlin assumed that Arthur was on the other side of the hill, since he couldn't see him at all.
"Speak of the devil." Merlin muttered. He stood up and wiped off his pants uselessly- they were already ripped and covered in weeks of grime. "Well, it was nice to meet you…" Merlin paused, waiting for a name.
"I'm just a nobody, and you probably won't remember me, but it was nice to meet you too. I know I'll remember what you told me for a long time."
Merlin thought that was rather sad, but when he went to tell the stranger that he wouldn't forget him, Arthur called for him again.
"I don't forget my friends!" Merlin called over his shoulder as he ran off to find Arthur. Matthew doubted it, but he really liked the idea of being friends with Merlin. He smiled and waved silently as Merlin ran off.
…..
During Merlin's time making friends, Prince Arthur really hadn't gotten anywhere with Alfred.
"You're talking nonsense!" Arthur shouted, his face beet red.
"I'm hungry!" Alfred shouted back, stomping his feet like an angry child.
"And why the hell should I care?"
"If you're going to hold me hostage, you should have to feed me! I usually feed my hostages!"
America was indeed being kept hostage. Prince Arthur, confused and angry, had tied him to a tree and had kept guard while trying to extract information from him, which had turned into a complete failure. Arthur has assumed that the stranger with the odd dialect was a part of the plot, but Arthur had also assumed that the stranger was too much of an idiot to be a magic user or the one behind the plot. With that in mind, he had tried to figure out what the plot even was, but apparently the glasses guy was a complete and utter idiot - just someone's pawn. Now Arthur was just waiting for Merlin or the person in charge of this idiot too show up.
"Usually? Than you're going to be the exception."
"NOOO, ENGLAND SAVE ME!"
"You finally ask for my help? This is only, what, the second time in your entire life?" a mysterious voice answered from nowhere. Arthur flipped around; looking for the source of the voice, but it seemed to be coming from everywhere at once. This guy must be the one that Arthur had been waiting for.
"I've never asked for your help!" the tied up stranger growled.
"You just did, you moron!" the voice snapped.
"You're a liar! I never said anything! You just showed up!"
Were those two really arguing while one of them was being held hostage? Arthur suddenly felt that he was being made fun of, and he didn't like it one bit.
"I'm right here you know!" Arthur shouted at the sky, unsure as to where he should direct his comment, "And I can kill your friend here whenever I want."
"Really? You'll kill him for me? I'd love that! May I watch?" the mysterious voice responded, sounding pleased.
Arthur eyed his prisoner warily. What was the relationship between those two? The prisoner just laughed, and Arthur nearly fell over when a man suddenly appeared next to him.
"Well?" the man asked.
"Y-You're a wizard. M-My father will have you killed for whatever you did to me and my servant." Arthur sputtered, hoping beyond all hopes that this person would be intimidated by his father.
"I think I made a mistake," England mused, "I didn't meant to go so far into the past."
"What are you talking about?" the confused youth and the confused country asked at the same time.
"MERLIN!" Arthur shouted in a rage. If that idiot was here, maybe he could shed some light on the situation. In fact, it was probably his fault that they were in this situation in the first place.
"Wow, I made a really big mistake." England mused. If he had taken Merlin and Arthur out of their time period, than England might cease to exist at all. He really needed to send them back. "I guess I should have thought this through a little more before I did it." England muttered.
Merlin ran up, stopping short a few feet from England.
"Arthur, who are these people?" Merlin asked, staring wide eyed at England and America.
"I was hoping you would have an answer to that. Have you gotten us into trouble again?" Arthur seethed.
"I was with you all morning! What could I have done?"
"I'M HUNGRY!"
"Shut up!" Both Arthurs yelled at the same time. Merlin just stared.
"Dammit, I'm not strong enough to send them back to their time. I learned the spell just in case, but I know I can only send one person back." England continued muttering to himself as everyone else watched him. He was too wrapped up in his own thoughts to notice.
"What the hell are you muttering to yourself over there, creepy?" Arthur growled.
"Mind your own business!"
"That is no way to talk to a future king! I'm already going to have you executed. Don't push your luck, or I'll have you tortured beforehand." England pushed Arthur into a tree, and grabbed him by the collar.
"Don't," England seethed, "push my patience. I'm trying to save all of our lives, and I obviously supersede you."
"And how do you figure that?" was Arthur's snarky remark.
"Engl- Uhh, I mean, Iggy, I think you're crossing into sketchy territory, if you catch my drift." America commented, sounding mature, for once.
England sighed, knowing that America was right, and dropped Arthur to the ground. "Just shut up and let me think for a second." England saw Merlin relax out of the corner of his eye, and realized that he was the one that had made Merlin tense. It was Merlin's job to keep Arthur safe, and here he was endangering him. Never did England think that he would be threatening one of the most important kings who ever lived in his home.
Wait, that was it! Why didn't he think of it sooner?
"You, servant. Come with me."
"Wait, what do you want Merlin for? He's just an imbecile!" Arthur shouted as England dragged Merlin away.
"Listen, I need your help. I know that you already know your future, which is to help Arthur become king. You still want to help him, don't you?" England whispered conspiratorially.
Merlin blinked a few times, and slowly nodded his head.
"Why does everyone seem to know about my future?"
"You're important, I suppose." England shrugged.
"Why does everyone know that?" Merlin seethed.
"I know it's irritating, but now really isn't the time. Do you want to help Arthur or not?"
Merlin sighed. "What do you want me to do? And why should I even trust you? So far, you've given me no reason to."
"I know, and it's difficult to explain, but please believe me." England pleaded.
Merlin got that same feeling again- that feeling he got when he was with the other man. The feeling that this man, although a stranger, really wasn't lying to him.
"Why do I feel like I can trust you?" Merlin asked.
"It's….rather complicated, and we really don't have time. Maybe, one day, I'll tell you all about me."
Merlin sighed, tired of mysterious people who refused to tell him anything, but had no issue flaunting their knowledge of him.
"What do I have to do?" Merlin conceded.
…
A little while later, a blue fog began to permeate the air around Arthur. Immediately recalling the purple fog that brought him here, Arthur started freaking out.
"Merlin! Merlin, you'd better be by my side in one second, or I'll have you scrub the floors for three days straight!" Arthur mandated, terrified of losing Merlin to these weirdoes.
"Right here, sire." Merlin appeared, as if out of nowhere from the blue fog.
"As you should be."
"Aww, did you miss me?" Merlin cooed. Arthur smacked him upside the head.
"Shut up." Arthur smirked.
…..
"You think they'll be O.K?" Alfred asked as he undid his bindings. England watched him, but Alfred noted that England seemed to be looking straight through him.
"Of course they will, you idiot! They were from the past, I would've known if they were going to do poorly in their lives!"
"They were from the past? Really? That's so awesome, man! Who were those dudes, than?"
"HOW COULD YOU NOT FIGURE THAT OUT?" England beat America over the head. "You really are an idiot, aren't you?" America just shrugged as he moaned about his head.
"They were Prince Arthur and Merlin the wizard. Surely you've heard of them?"
"I thought you were Arthur?" America asked, genuinely confused.
"God, you're an idiot." England mumbled. "C'mon, I'm hungry. Let's go get some lunch. Coming Canada?"
"Yep!" Canada replied, appearing from nowhere. He was uncharacteristically chipper today, as noted by England, but his presence was so quickly forgotten, that England forgot to strike up a conversation with the peppy country to ask him why. But that was O.K. with Matthew- he was coming up with an idea for tomorrow.